Hengqin New Area

Tucked away in the southern corner of Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province, Hengqin has been a national-level New Area since 2009. Because of its geographical location adjacent to Macao, it has been targeted as an important area of land connecting the economies of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao during a new round of reform and opening up policies in China.

Hengqin covers an area of 106.46 square kilometers, more than three times as large as Macao. The island is made up of one town, three communities and 11 villages.

Hengqin New Area is home to more than 7,000 people among whom 4,203 have been permanent residents since its establishment in 2009.

Hengqin New Area focuses on developing finance, business services, tourism, innovation culture, Traditional Chinese Medicine, research and development centers for sciences, educational bases and high technology as its pillar industries. 

According to the Macao Daily Times, Hengqin's GDP rose 72 percent year on year from January to June 2014, reaching 2.3 billion yuan (US$371 million). Foreign investment in use hit US$163 million, up 206 percent year on year.

Hengqin is a 106.46-square-kilometer coastal island tucked into the southern corner of the city of Zhuhai in Guangdong Province. Adjacent to Macao, which is no more than 200 meters away, the island has been selected as a New Area in order to enhance economic ties with Hong Kong and Macao.

On Aug. 14, 2009, the State Council approved a proposed plan on the overall development of Hengqin and Hengqin will enjoy more preferential policies than the previous economic zones in Guangdong Province.

The Hengqin New Area was officially established on Dec. 16, 2009. In the ensuing years, it has enjoyed great economic expansion with the support of preferential policies including high tax rebates and 24-hour customs clearance.

A bridge connecting Hengqin with Macao and Hong Kong is scheduled to open in 2016. When it is completed, it will only take about five minutes to drive to Macao and 40 minutes to drive to Hong Kong.

As improved public facilities have allowed Hengqin to expand its ties with Hong Kong and Macao, the coastal city has resolved to attract investment by developing a variety of sectors as its pillar industries: finance, business services, tourism, culture, traditional Chinese medicine, research and development centers, education bases and high tech industry.

The coastal area of Hengqin is now home to a satellite campus of the University of Macau and several state-owned banks, including the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China and Bank of China.